Scotland Office

Smith Commission Agreement: Non-legislative and additional issues for consideration

Lord Dunlop: My right hon Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland (David Mundell) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement: On 27 November 2014 the Smith Commission published its Heads of Agreement on the devolution of further powers to the Scottish Parliament. The Smith Commission Agreement was the first time that all five of Scotland’s major political parties came together to agree the constitutional future of Scotland and was an historic achievement. In addition to the provisions requiring legislation which are being taken forward in the Scotland Bill, the Smith Commission Agreement identified a number of areas for further consideration between the UK and Scottish Governments. In the period since the Smith Commission, the UK and Scottish Governments have held discussions on these matters. The attached table provides information on work in these areas. The Agreement also identified a number of areas where non-legislative action was required. Discussions on the agreement of a new fiscal framework for Scotland and work to strengthen intergovernmental working are on-going. The attached table provides an update on other such areas, including the agreement of Memorandums of Understanding in relation to the BBC and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.



WMS - Smith Commission Agreement
(Word Document, 33.36 KB)





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HCWS458

Ministry of Justice

Prison and Probation Inspectorates

Lord Faulks: My right honourable friend the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Michael Gove) made the following Written Statement on 7 January 2016."I am pleased to announce that Peter Clarke has been appointed as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons for three years, commencing 1 February 2016, and Dame Glenys Stacey has been appointed as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Probation for three years, commencing 1 March 2016. Peter Clarke is a retired senior police officer, who served in the Metropolitan Police Service for more than 30 years. He rose to the rank of Assistant Commissioner and also served as Head of the Anti-Terrorist Branch and National Co-ordinator of Terrorist Investigations. In 2014 he was appointed Education Commissioner for Birmingham, to conduct an inquiry into the allegations concerning Birmingham schools arising from the “Trojan Horse” letter. Peter also served on the Board of the Charity Commission until January 2016. Dame Glenys Stacey is currently the Chief Executive of Ofqual, the exams regulator in England. She is a solicitor by profession and has 17 years’ experience leading public sector organisations, having previously served as CEO of Standards for England, Animal Health, the Greater Manchester Magistrates’ Court Committee and the Criminal Cases Review Commission. In August 2015 she announced her intention to leave Ofqual when her current term finishes at the end of February 2016. These appointments have been made after a recruitment process for these posts which followed the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice. Both roles were advertised online and candidates were then assessed against the criteria for the posts. An independent selection panel produced a shortlist of candidates deemed appointable. As required under the rules, I then selected my preferred candidates from that shortlist. Peter Clarke and Dame Glenys Stacey appeared before the Justice Select Committee, which concluded both were appointable to the roles of HM Chief Inspector of Prisons and HM Chief Inspector of Probation respectively. Both appointments are subject to security clearance."


This statement has also been made in the House of Commons: 
HCWS450

Department for Communities and Local Government

Neighbourhood Planning

Baroness Williams of Trafford: My hon. Friend the Minister of State for Housing and Planning has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.On 9 July 2015, I extended for a period of 6 months the criteria for consideration of the recovery of planning appeals to include proposals for residential development over 10 units in areas where a qualifying body has submitted a neighbourhood plan proposal to the local planning authority or where a neighbourhood plan has been made (Hansard HCWS90); and I am now extending that period for a further 6 months from today.


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HCWS457

Attorney General

Serious Fraud Office (Contingencies Fund Advance)

Lord Keen of Elie: My Hon Friend the Solicitor General has made the following written ministerial statement:The Solicitor General (Robert Buckland). I would like to inform the House that a cash advance from the Contingencies Fund has been sought for the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).In line with the current arrangement for SFO funding agreed with HM Treasury, the SFO will be submitting a Reserve claim as part of the Supplementary Estimate process for 2015-16.The advance is required to meet an urgent cash requirement on existing services pending Parliamentary approval of the 2015-16 Supplementary Estimate. The Supplementary Estimate will seek an increase in both the Resource Departmental Expenditure Limit and the Net Cash Requirement in order to cover the cost of significant investigations and the settlement of material liabilities.Parliamentary approval for additional resources of £21,137,000 (twenty one million, one hundred and thirty seven thousand pounds) will be sought in a Supplementary Estimate for the Serious Fraud Office. Pending that approval, urgent expenditure estimated at £15,500,000 (fifteen million, five hundred thousand pounds) will be met by a repayable cash advance from the Contingencies Fund.The advance will be repaid upon Royal Assent of the Supply and Appropriation (Anticipation and Adjustments) Bill.


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HCWS449

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Post-Council Written Ministerial Statement: Foreign Affairs Council (Trade), 15-19 December 2015

Lord Maude of Horsham: The EU Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) met twice in Nairobi during the 10th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The first meeting of the FAC (Trade) took place on the 15th December before the formal opening of the WTO Ministerial. The second meeting of the FAC (Trade) took place on the 19th December just before the conclusion of the Ministerial. At both meetings, the Council adopted Conclusions. Both sets of Conclusions are attached to this Statement. The Nairobi Ministerial was the first WTO Ministerial Conference in Africa. WTO Members agreed a series of Ministerial Decisions on agriculture, on cotton and on development, the latter focussed on the interests of the Least Developed Countries. The Decisions in agriculture are on export competition, on public stockholding, on a special safeguard mechanism for developing countries and on measures related to cotton. Decisions were also made relating to preferential treatment for Least Developed Countries in services and in rules of origin. The Ministerial met UK objectives in agreeing substantive outcomes on export competition in agriculture, on cotton, and on development while leaving the way open for WTO negotiations to proceed more flexibly post-Nairobi. The Ministerial also welcomed two countries acceding to the WTO, Afghanistan and Liberia. Within the EU, the expectation is that Council will confirm its position on the Nairobi package at the next meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council, under the Dutch Presidency, on 18th January 2016.



Conclusions 1 and 2
(Word Document, 17.55 KB)





This statement has also been made in the House of Commons: 
HCWS456